Work like Leonardo

Having small children leads to many thought provoking conversations.  The most recent, sparked by a discussion of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, was about Leonardo da Vinci.  (I honestly wasn’t going to include so many links but after linking to TMNT, I felt guilty not linking to da Vinci).

Leonardo da Vinci was Really Smart

When discussing the blue bandana-ed turtle, Leonardo, my 5 year old recognized this name and offered up, “Leonardo da Vinci was really smart.”  I was quick to point out, Leonardo da Vinci worked hard.  Drawing the parallel between working hard and success is an important lesson I want my boys to learn (though I’m sure this would amuse my 11th grade Trigonometry Teacher who had a dim view of my work ethic).

Plenty of People Work Hard

As we continued the conversation, I realized that plenty of people work hard.  Da Vinci wasn’t wildly successful just because he worked hard.  One could work hard rolling a rock up a hill every day but you don’t see any mutated martial arts skilled terrapins named Sisyphus.

Work Hard at Being Smart

I want my boys to work hard at being smart, strive to have new ideas, and struggle to understand things.

Sal Ferrarello (@salcode)

Sal is a PHP developer with a focus on the WordPress platform. He is a conference speaker with a background including Piano Player, Radio DJ, Magician/Juggler, Beach Photographer, and High School Math Teacher. Sal can be found professionally at WebDevStudios, where he works as a senior backend engineer.